VIDEOS: Cops say largest heroin trafficking raid in memory nabs top heroin dealers in Brockton area

Federal officials said wiretapping phones played a key role in breaking the alleged heroin ring and arrests of 25 suspects on Thursday. The continuing battle against heroin and OxyContin addiction has been the subject of numerous government reports, studies and hearings. A state report, conducted after The Enterprise publi...

By Maribeth Conway and Amy Littlefield

The Enterprise, Brockton, MA

By Maribeth Conway and Amy Littlefield

Posted Nov. 18, 2010 at 12:01 AM
Updated Nov 18, 2010 at 6:17 PM

By Maribeth Conway and Amy Littlefield

Posted Nov. 18, 2010 at 12:01 AM
Updated Nov 18, 2010 at 6:17 PM

BROCKTON

» Social News

The SWAT team broke down the door early Thursday morning in Brockton, pointed their guns and demanded that everyone hit the floor.

“I was so scared,” said the mother of Jason Miranda and Justin A. Teixeira, two of 25 people arrested in Brockton, Easton, Stoughton and other towns Thursday in a massive raid to break up a heroin trafficking ring centered in Brockton.

“They pointed the gun at me, like a criminal,” said the mother, who lives in the Clinton Street house where the two men were arrested. She did not want to be identified.

Officers and agents arrested the two men and sent toys and other possessions flying as they ransacked the house, searching for drugs and guns. More than two hours later, they left.

“It’s a devastating day in my life,” she said with tears in her eyes.

But another Brockton mother experienced Thursday’s raid very differently.

“I feel like I won the lottery today,” said a woman who owns a home near the Clifton Avenue house where at least one drug suspect was arrested Thursday.

The woman, who feared retaliation and did not give her name, said her son is a recovering heroin addict who came “close to death” on the drug. She said she could name 20 friends of her son who had died of overdoses before their 25th birthdays. She said she is happy to see the alleged drug-pushers behind bars.

“Brockton is what it is. It’s a big epidemic out here,” said another of the woman’s sons.

Heroin, which can cost just $5 a dose, has killed hundreds in the Brockton area, many younger than 25, and is a leading cause of death for young adults in the state.

A state report found that between 2002 and 2007, there were 3,236 deaths in Massachusetts linked to opiate-related overdoses. An opiate epidemic first reported by The Enterprise found that at least 144 locally died between 2004 and 2007, according to an examination of local records.

Twenty-two men and three women were arrested Thursday, booked at the police station and arraigned in federal court in Boston following the early-morning raids at residences in Brockton, Easton, Stoughton, Hanover, Dedham, Lynn and Somerville. Most of the arrests took place in Brockton. More than 300 federal, state and local police officers participated in the raids.

The 25 suspects all were charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin, between June and November.

Thursday’s arrests will not wipe out heroin dealing in Brockton, Police Chief William Conlon said, “but will seriously damage people’s chances of getting anything here for a while to come.”

By early afternoon, the neighborhoods where the arrests had taken place were quiet, with broken locks and dented doors the only remnants of the morning’s activity.

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But the families of those arrested relived the trauma of the raids and waited anxiously to hear from their loved ones.

“We’re just waiting until he calls,” said Admila Andrade, 17, the sister of Iury Jandir Gomes, who was arrested on Green Street.

Ana, the sister of Miranda and Teixeira, who did not give her last name, said Teixeira recently fathered a baby and had gotten a job.

“They’re a product of their environment, and it’s not their fault,” she said.

Federal authorities alleged that Teixeira, also known as “Becky,” was one of the city’s top heroin dealers. “Fifteen fingers,” or 150 grams, of heroin were seized from Teixeira on Nov. 2, part of a year-long drug probe that ended with Thursday’s arrests, according to federal court documents.

Neighbors across the city said they were relieved by his arrest and others, which also lifted guns and drugs from the streets. Some saw police vehicles pull up to a home to make arrests. Other heard a state police helicopter thump overhead or watched as news media crews descended on the area.

“It’s good, it’s not safe for my children,” Rob Credle, who lives near the Clifton Avenue location, said of the arrests.

His wife, who did not give her name, said she worries about her 12-year-old son running into a drug dealer on the way to South Middle School. “They’re taking it off the streets,” she said.

Some neighbors said they were “shocked” to hear that they were living near suspected drug dealers.

“Oh my goodness, it’s so close,” said Velma Richards, who lives in the Clifton Avenue neighborhood.

Neighbors on Clifton Avenue said they were surprised to see three black SUVs, a state police cruiser, a police dog and an agent carrying a cardboard box from a home there.

Others weren’t surprised. “It’s Brockton,” shrugged Jeremy Walker, 23, as he left a home on Clifton Avenue.